Through a Glass, Darkly: The Fun Next Door

Saturday, April 23, 2011

The Fun Next Door

I warned my neighbors that I would be arriving with my camera to make a blog record of all the neat things they're up to, over there. So, here we go!
Ali decided she wanted a garden, and after much research, opted for this interesting arrangement of raised beds with a special soil mixture. A family member (I think) came and built the bench (in the middle) with the natural twig trellis, and an L-shaped bed on each side. In addition, there are asparagus beds, lavender bushes, watermelon hills, and many other fun additions to this garden spot. And -- do you see that cute tiki bar up at the top of the hill? Arnold built that himself. I tell you, our yard is like an ill-kept jungle compared to these two! We love to go nosing around and seeing what they're up to.

Here's the L-shaped bed on the left. Ali had some spare pavers, so she made the curved bed up front for some of her more invasive plants.

That's some lovely soil.

Ali found this chair being thrown out. Doesn't it look gorgeous with plants in its seat? Such a fun idea! She also uses a number of these clay chimney inserts to give structure and height to some of her larger plants.

Adam and Arnold examine the fence that Arnold put up today. They'll put some mesh wire along the bottom of it, to keep animals out of the garden area.

Here's one of the prettiest garden ideas I've seen; Ali found it online. It's just an old pallet, with landscape fabric stapled all underneath and along the sides, to hold the soil in. She put the plants in groups according to color. It's ideal for patio gardens and limited space, because after these plants' roots have developed, you can stand this up on its side, against a wall or fence. Really beautiful, don't you think?